Every once in a while, a movie comes along with a premise so fundamentally weird that you can almost hear the studio executives break into a flop sweat, wondering how many Happy Meals and cross-promotional merch to make the juice worth the squeeze. “The Sheep Detectives” is exactly the kind of movie that, when you […]
Film
Streep, Hathaway, Blunt and Tucci: Still a Perfect Combo
As someone who has dressed like a color blind retiree since childhood, I know next to nothing about couture, modern fashion, or why one designer brand outranks another. Watching “The Devil Wears Prada” all the way back in the year of our lord 2006, I knew the film really wasn’t “for me,” yet I still […]
I Tell You Once Again, It’s Bad
Everyone who goes to the movies is after something different. Relaxation, stimulation, escapism—all are valid. That’s why it’s hard for me to reconcile exactly who “Michael,” the Michael Jackson musical biopic, is meant for and if its existence is healthy for culture and society at large. The film ends in 1988, at the height of […]
Under the Radar Picks for 2026
We’re already a third of the way through 2026 and the movies that have made big money have been the usual suspects (“Super Mario Galaxy” and “Scream 7”) with some word-of-mouth crowdpleasers (“Project Hail Mary” and “Send Help”) and a viral micro-budget horror movie with a massive YouTube fanbase (“Iron Lung”). But several pretty great […]
A Momentous Year for Film on La Croisette
More than Sundance, more than Berlin, Venice or Toronto, the film festival I have unshakable faith in when it comes to programming of either future cinematic classics or wildly ambitious failures is the Cannes Film Festival. Since 1946, the festival has been held at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès in Cannes, France, and […]
Grit and Determination on a Big Screen
Three Bend athletes share the spotlight in a new outdoor adventure documentary, “ADAPTED.” The athletes all have spinal cord injuries, changing the course of their lives. They first returned to sport through Oregon Adaptive Sports, starting on the ski slopes. The film follows them through their journeys of sheer determination, resilience, courage and adventure. Anna […]
Another Castle!
I’m not sure what to say about “The Super Mario Galaxy Movie,” but one thing is for sure: I’m not sure if I like Chris Pratt that much anymore. Which I find strange because his character on “Parks and Recreation,” Andy Dwyer, is one of my all-time favorite sitcom schlubs and he was one of […]
Unzipped Hearts
As I get older, the more I realize that great, unconventional romances might be the most rewarding genre for me in my growth as a human being. A remarkable romance not only makes you swoon over the possibilities of love in this crazy world, but also allows you to see into the lives of people […]
In Space, No One Can Hear You Hug
I had an epiphany while watching “Project Hail Mary.” Ryan Gosling could have played Marty in “Marty Supreme,” but Timothée Chalamet could never have played Ryland Grace in “Project Hail Mary.” There’s an effortless charisma to what Gosling does here that feels like a future Best Actor nomination, without question. It’s a movie star performance […]
One Battle, Sinners, and So Much More
In what felt like one of the most hotly contested Oscar races in recent memory, I found myself excited for the 98th Annual Academy Awards more than I had any right to be. Don’t get me wrong, the ceremony itself was overlong and filled with awkward moments, cringey speeches and performative humanitarianism, but the films […]

